


Detective Aryll

by FlameUltra04



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Genre: Gen, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:20:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26614369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlameUltra04/pseuds/FlameUltra04
Summary: Outset Island is generally a peaceful place until the people begin to claim that there is some sort of monster in the forest which appears at night. When Link goes on to investigate, he mysteriously disappears. With her brother gone and the people of the island in disarray and fear of this monster, young Aryll takes it upon herself to get to the bottom of the strange happenings on Outset Island.
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a little story I made just for fun for September and October. It takes place some time before Wind Waker, so the overall story of the game isn’t really needed for this story.

Chapter 1

The winds were blowing calmly, and the waves of the Great Sea were pushing and pulling at the shore. The sounds of rustling leaves filled the air, and so did the salty scent of the sea. All was pleasant on the small, humble island known as Outset, and that was how the people liked it, especially Aryll, one of it’s youngest residents, who was in her usual spot, playing with the seagulls on the watchtower, who were trying to nip at her flower patterned dress.

The sun was hanging low in the evening sky. It would be dinnertime soon and her Grandmother was bound to call her over to their house on the western edge. Aryll got up and waved goodbye to the seagulls surrounding her, then faced the edge of her lookout. 

She scanned the island just like she always did, and saw its people. Old man Orca and his older (though much shorter) brother Sturgeon were outside their house, probably arguing over something or the other like always. Abe was having a tough time sneaking behind one of the island’s native pigs. His wife, Rose must’ve been inside, while Aryll spotted their two young sons, Joel and Zill hopping on the rocks in the water. Aryll then used her telescope to look at Mesa’s house. Still surrounded by overgrown grass. He was always lazy about cutting it. Looking at the summit, to the east Aryll spotted her older brother, Link, napping on the rocks under a tree. Then Sue-Belle, Sturgeon’s granddaughter, came into her view, making her way down. She didn’t have a jar on her head, which was a pretty rare sight to see.

“Everyone’s there.” Aryll said to herself. Knowing everything was in order, she climbed down the ladder quickly before she’d be called to her house. She saw Abe fail again to sneak behind a pig, and she giggled. He looked ready to give up. 

Nonetheless, Aryll called him and waved. After Abe waved back, Aryll smelled the faint scent of her grandmother’s soup and rushed over. As she made her way near the house, her grandmother opened the door and stepped outside eating soup from a bowl.

“Ah, Aryll!” she said. “I was about to call you over. I made some soup for dinner.” Aryll smiled and ran over to smell the scent once again. No one could beat her grandmother’s soup recipe.

Her grandmother looked around for Link but he was obviously nowhere in sight.

“Go get Link, will you, dear? Where is he anyway?” she asked.

“Oh, he’s taking a nap on the mountain. I’ll go get him.” Aryll reassured, then she made her way to the other side of the island. As she was walking, she passed Sue-Belle.

“Good evening Ms. Sue-Belle!” She greeted. Realizing Sue-Belle was on the mountain, which was probably the first time Aryll noticed her up there, she asked, “Why were you on the mountain?”

“Oh, hello Aryll. I was just getting some fresh air in the forest.” This piqued Aryll’s interest, causing her to look up at the Island’s forest. The ‘Forest of Fairies’ it was called. Directly west of the summit Link was sleeping on, and across a bridge was where it was. She hadn’t been there often, though she and Link found it to be a great place to play Hide and Seek when she was there.

When Aryll looked back at Sue-Belle, she realized that Sue-Belle was staring at the forest too. She didn’t even notice her purple hair in her own face. The expression on her face while she stared at the forest looked uneasy, but it may have been Aryll’s eyes tricking her. Still, Aryll felt that something wasn’t right with her.

“Are you okay?” Aryll managed to say. This caused Sue-Belle to snap back into focus.

“Yes. I’m fine. Don’t you worry.” Sue-Belle said with a smile, then she slowly walked down the slope and over to her grandfather’s house. Aryll couldn’t help but think Sue-Belle wasn’t herself, but once again, it may have been just her.

Aryll jogged up to the top of the summit, and spotted Link’s blue shirt. She walked over and shook her brother a bit. Link slowly began to stir, and he got up with a yawn. He and Aryll’s golden hair blew slightly in the breeze as they locked eyes and smiled at each other.

“Hey...Aryll.” Link slowly said.

“Big Brother, Grandma made some soup. She wanted me to get you.” Aryll grinned and Link looked at the sky as night was soon approaching.  
“It’s that late already? How long was I asleep?” Link ruffled his hair and yawned again. He looked at Aryll, who was ready to take off running.  
“A long time, but come on! Let’s get back before the soup gets cold!” Aryll took off running. “First one there gets extra!” She yelled back.

When Aryll was back on level ground, she looked back to see Link quickly gaining on her and she forced her legs to move faster. Then she felt herself lose speed. She spotted Sue-Belle talking to Sturgeon and Mesa nearby their house. Aryll couldn’t hear much but she caught the last word Sue-Belle said, which was, “-alone.”

Aryll pulled her head back in front of her but she slowed down too much and felt a breeze as she saw Link dash past her, laughing. Aryll still ran but she knew she had lost this race. It was strange how fast Link managed to run despite that he just woke up from a nap, but he was her older brother so she wasn’t surprised. Link was always better at these races compared to her.

Aryll passed her Grandma sitting on their patio and went inside to see Link pouring some soup into a bowl. He looked at her and chuckled.

“Looks like I get extra soup.”  
Aryll sighed and argued, “That wasn’t fair. I got distracted!” Link shrugged in response, saying, “Well, there’s plenty left for you though.”

Aryll looked into the pot. He was right. Link left more soup than Aryll was able to eat. Aryll sighed and smiled. Of course Link likes to bluff like that. He’s still always very nice to her even when she loses these competitions.

She heard the door behind her close, but then heard some faint voices outside. She poured some soup into a bowl and went outside. She found Link sitting in front, while on the side, she heard her grandmother and Sue-Belle talking, along with Sturgeon and Mesa, who sounded like he was there grudgingly. Aryll couldn’t help but try to eavesdrop while she ate. Link noticed and decided to do the same from where he was sitting.

She heard Sue-Belle say, “Look, I just want to know if anyone else was up there.” Grandma chimed in saying, “Well, Link was there but Aryll said he was sleeping. He wouldn’t be doing anything else up there.”

“Fine, but why am I here?” Mesa grumbled, letting Sue-Belle answer. “Well, I asked where you were and no one knew.” 

“I was in my house. Rose was in her house too. Why didn’t you drag her here too? In fact, why are YOU here?” Considering Sturgeon didn’t speak yet, Aryll assumed that it was directed at him. 

Sue-Belle’s voice had a hint of frustration this time. “Well, Abe and these boys said she was inside. That’s all the proof I need.” “And I’M here because I want to be there for my granddaughter. Is there any issue with that? Well…personally I think she is overreacting a bit.” Sturgeon was practically yelling until he trailed off.

“Alright calm down, Sturgeon. But...why are you asking us if we were there an-” Mesa’s words were halted when Aryll’s foot made the wood creak. Before they could see her, she quickly walked back over to Link, who also stopped listening and ate his soup already.

“Aryll, Link. You two don’t need to hide. You both can listen too.” They heard their grandmother say. Link slowly scooted over to where they could see him, while Aryll walked over to them. Oh, of course she could be there. She saw Joel and Zill sitting there too.

“Back on topic,” Mesa continued, “why are you asking us this stuff anyway?” Sturgeon sighed in response. “She told me that she just left like she wasn’t alone in the forest. Like I said, Sue-Belle, do you not think you’re overreacting on this? It was just a feeling.”

Sue-Belle then looked at Aryll. “Aryll, you weren’t up there, were you?”

“What? No. I only was there to wake Link up.”  
That’s when Sue-Belle looked at the ground. She breathed slowly before saying, “Maybe I did overreact a little.” All of them except for Mesa laughed a little. It was broken by Joel’s yawn.  
“Ah...I’m goin’ home. I’m sleepy…” Zill nodded his head before yawning too. 

“It’s getting late. It would be a good idea for you both to go home. Abe and Rose will start to worry soon.” Sue-Belle said.

“Link, Aryll, that goes for you two as well. Maybe you two should sleep.” Their Grandma chimed in.  
“Finally. See you all in the morning.” Mesa said as he caught the yawn. He stretched out his arms and walked over to his house. Sturgeon left too. Sue-Belle thanked them and bid them all goodnight, offering to take Joel and Zill to their house too. That left Link, Aryll and their Grandma.

Aryll started to believe that rumor about yawns being contagious when she did it too. So did Grandma.

“Alright. I think it’s about time we all go to sleep too. I’ll keep the extra soup for tomorrow.” Link already went inside, and Aryll starred out at the other houses, barely acknowledging the empty bowl in her hands.

“Aryll? Are you alright?” Her grandmother was obviously concerned. She then put a hand on Aryll’s shoulder, saying, “You don’t need to worry about anything. Sue-Belle just had a strange feeling today.”

This gave Aryll a bit of reassurance. Standing up, she went inside with her grandmother and hugged her goodnight. She gave her brother a hug as he was about to climb into his bed, and then climbed into her own bed. She pulled over the covers and closed her eyes, but yet...she couldn’t sleep. She opened her eyes again and couldn’t force herself asleep.

All she thought about was Sue-Belle’s face. That face of...slight fear and insecurity. Aryll had to admit. Sometimes when she and Link played in the forest, it did scare her a bit. Once they gave each other some bad scares and both couldn’t sleep for weeks, but that was years ago. Lately she hasn’t been afraid. But to know that the forest caused this feeling she had, she didn’t like it.

“...You’re okay.” She whispered to herself. She suddenly had an urge to wake someone up. She felt a bit lonely and afraid. Everything was so quiet in the dead of the night.

She checked on her grandma in the chair and brother in his bed. Both seemed to already be fast asleep. How long ago did they come inside? Was it minutes or hours? Either way, it took some time for the young girl to finally sleep, for something about today just made her feel like something wasn’t right.

But...like what Sue-Belle went through, it was just a misplaced feeling. Wasn’t it? Must have been. Like Sturgeon said, she must have been overreacting. It took some time but Aryll finally found the ability to sleep again.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“-ryl.” A faint voice called. 

“ -up, Aryll.” It called again, clearer this time. Aryll could barely open her eyes before she heard it again.

“Hey, Aryll. Wake up.” This time the voice was the clearest it could be.

“Link, you don’t need to wake her up. Let her sleep if she wants to.” She made out her grandma’s voice calmly protesting. It was too late. Aryll opened her eyes to see Link above her, looking concerned.

“You’re usually up earlier.” He said to her. Now that she was awake, Link climbed down from her bed and stood upright on the floor, asking, “Are you okay?”

“What...time is it?” Aryll groaned, rubbing her eyes.

“Well...you already missed breakfast.” Link sounded confused. Aryll was surprised to hear this herself. She usually was up early in the morning, or at least, earlier than Link was.

“I...slept late.” She climbed out of her bed and stretched to yawn. The other two could tell why Aryll must’ve slept late.

“Oh Aryll. I told you, there’s no need to worry about Sue-Belle. She just had a strange feeling.” Her grandma reassured her.

Aryll smiled and hopped out of bed. She got the sleep she needed, and mostly the energy she needed. Link was already leaving, saying something about showing Joel some rock hopping. Aryll sighed and tried to figure out her breakfast.

• • •

After having her morning meal, she went outside. She spotted Link jumping across the rocks in the water, then turned her sight to the forest again. Aryll then shook her head and walked over to the shore to sit down and take it easy. Some seagulls flew down and gave her company like they usually did. The young girl noticed herself close to dozing off and tried to stay awake, staring at the late morning sky.

After some time, she heard the sound of feet beating against the sand and noticed the gulls flying away. Those footsteps were coming closer to her. Turning her head, she saw her brother walking towards her, with a slightly secretive look on his face. 

“Hi, Link.” She said. Link sat down next to her and greeted her back. Before he spoke, he looked back at their house to make sure their grandma wasn’t able to hear them. Sure enough, she was inside.

“I...wanted to ask you something since everyone talked about it yesterday.” Link began. Aryll had the feeling that she knew what he was going to say, but she let him continue.

“Later today, maybe in the evening. Do you wanna go into the forest? Maybe we can play some hide and seek again.” And there it was. Of course Link wanted to go into the forest. Normally, she would say yes without a second thought, but after yesterday, she still felt like it wouldn’t be safe.

“Are you sure?” She finally said. “I don’t think Grandma would like it.”

“Oh?” Are you scared after yesterday?” Link playfully sneered

Aryll’s face turned a soft red as she exclaimed, “What? No I’m not!”

Link knew she was lying though. “Then why don’t you want to go? Come on Aryll. We’ll be fine.”

“But Grandma. She might not let us.” Aryll wouldn’t admit it, but she really did hope that her grandma would forbid them from going there for now. Link never seemed to be afraid of much. He was always the adventurous type. Aryll had some of that too but she was scared, and she didn’t want him to make fun of her.

Link paused since he didn’t want their grandma to hear at first, but why not take a chance?

“Okay, fine. I’ll go ask her. If she says yes, then we’re going.” And with that, the siblings got up and went to find their grandma.

“Wait.” Aryll said. “Can we ask her after lunch?”

• • •

Aryll was stalling quite a lot, but once it was evening, she realized her mistake. If her grandma said yes, then they’d be in the forest when it was dark, which definitely wouldn’t help how Aryll felt. Link eventually got bored and they finally decided to ask.

Their Grandma must have gone outside when they weren’t looking because they found her having a conversation with Rose on the other side of the island. Both were chatting and catching up with each other’s lives. Rose then noticed the two children walk up.

“Honestly. If I could, I’d take a trip over to Windfall. I heard that- ah, Link, Aryll. How are you both?”

“Good evening Mrs. Rose. We’ve been fine.” Link smiled and then looked over at his grandma. “Grandma, we wanted to ask…”

“Ask anything you want, Link.” She said

“Look...me and Aryll want to go into the forest.” When Link said it, his grandmother clearly didn’t expect him to ask such a thing.

“Now why would you want to do that?” She asked. 

“Well, we were bored and wanted to go play hide and seek up there. We won’t be gone that long. I promise.” Link quickly said, while Aryll stayed silent, which her grandmother noticed.

“Aryll...you really want to go into the forest?” She asked, knowing how Aryll acted in the morning.

“Yeah. I want to go!” Aryll almost panicked when she was addressed.

Their grandma sighed, “Well, alright. You two can go, but please be back by nighttime and make sure to be careful. Also don’t go trying to scare each other. You know how much sleep you both lost last time.”

“Okay.” Link said with a slight huff. “Come on Aryll!” Link took off running up the slope to the summit and Aryll made sure not to fall far behind him. Once they made it to the top, Aryll looked at the Great Sea to see the sun setting. Luckily this meant they wouldn’t be in there for long, but she still was scared. She put on a brave face so Link wouldn’t see. But when they approached the bridge leading to the forest, she looked a little uneasy.

“Aryll, it’ll be fine.” She heard Link say. Then she felt him wrap his hand around hers.

Knowing her brother was there made her feel a bit better, but it was him who made her come in the first place. They walked across the bridge, getting closer and closer to the entrance to the forest. Once there, Link was excited to go inside, but Aryll hesitated. She took a deep breath and followed Link inside.

“Ah this is the perfect time for hide and seek!” Link exclaimed. He had a point there. Nightfall was soon and the forest was pretty dark. The trees were thick and covered a lot of the approaching moonlight. It wasn’t dark enough so that she couldn’t see anything, but she still shivered with some fright.

“Okay, how about you hide first?” Link began. “I’ll count to 30. Just tell me when you’re ready.” Aryll nodded and scanned the forest before making a plan.

“I’m ready. Start counting…now!” Link sat down and covered his eyes, beginning his count.

“One…two…three…” Aryll saw a few good spots but she wanted to find what would be best.

“seven…eight…nine…” She ran frantically but tried to be quiet. Now she was on the other side of the forest. This was the best place to find a spot.

“fourteen…fifteen…sixteen…” Aryll spotted a log to hide in. She backed into it and tried to fit herself in.

“nineteen…twenty…twenty-one…” She made sure she had enough room in the log. Luckily, she did. Both of the ends were covered up by leaves so she had a good chance.

“twenty-three…twenty-four…twenty-five…” Aryll rearranged the leaves in front of her to look like they weren’t stepped on and she closed her eyes tight, hoping Link wouldn’t be able to find her.

“twenty-eight…twenty-nine…thirty! Okay Aryll, I’m coming!” She heard Link’s call. Still, she kept her eyes shut and wouldn’t open them till she was found. She hoped no seagulls were awake to find her or else they’d give her away.

She heard leaves and bushes being displaced, and they progressively got closer and closer. Link was the type of person to search every nook and cranny he could possibly find. Soon she heard the leaves right outside the log being moved. Oh boy. Surely Link was going to find her. She dared to open her eyes slightly and saw Link’s feet come in front of the log. He must know she’s there. Aryll prepared to see Link bend down and find her…but he didn’t. Link then walked away.

Maybe Aryll was going to outsmart her brother after all. He probably thought Aryll wouldn’t be able to fit into the log. Aryll silently giggled to herself, feeling confident. She felt proud that Link didn’t find her and she let her guard down.

She heard a knock on the top of the log and she yelped, giving her position away. Seems that her ‘victory’ was short lived. Aryll heard her big brother chuckle above her.

“Heh. Looks like I found you.” he bragged. 

“Aw…fine.” Aryll crawled out of the log and was met with Link resting his elbows on it.

“Now it’s my turn to hide.” Link grinned, looking like he knew the perfect spot.

They both went back near the forest’s entrance and prepared for the last round before they went back home. Aryll knew that their Grandma trusted them enough to come home soon. The sunlight was just about gone and the forest was darker than before. Link got down in a running position and waited for Aryll to start counting. He wouldn’t stop grinning. Aryll covered her eyes, barely even able to see her hands, and counted to thirty.

As soon as she said “one,” she heard Link take off running. He was fast and it didn’t take long for the sound of his feet to disappear. Did he really find a spot that quick?

“Nine…ten…eleven…twelve-” In that instant, she felt like something poked her in the back and she panicked, turning around. The only things there were plants. No one was hiding in the bushes. Maybe it was her imagination. Nothing could’ve been there. It was just her and Link…wherever he was hiding. She lost count of what number she was at.

“Um…Link. I’m gonna start again at ten.” She called out. Aryll continued counting, only feeling more uneasy. Beyond her counting, she couldn’t hear much aside from the surrounding seas. But once she got to “twenty-two,” there was suddenly a rustling of leaves very close by. She stopped her count again and scanned the forest, looking for where it could’ve come from. It was still too dark to see that much. It had to be Link messing with her.

“Link, this isn’t funny. Grandma said not to scare each other!” She tapped her foot into the dirt. She was getting angry. She didn’t like feeling afraid. Typically, Link would’ve given up when called out…but no one rose from the leaves. Instead, she heard more rustling from a bit far away. After a few still seconds, the rustling started slowly getting closer. The closer it got, the more her fear piled up. Her eyes darted everywhere, trying to see where it was, but she couldn’t see a thing in the darkness. Eventually, she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

“Link! Stop it!” She screamed, shutting her eyes tight and slamming her foot into the dirt. The sound immediately stopped.

“What did I do?” She heard her brother call out a few seconds later. She looked and made out Link’s silhouette rising out of some nearby bushes. He wasn’t near where the rustling was…no. It had to have been him.

“Don’t try to scare me! Grandma said not to!” She hollered. Link looked at her in confusion.

“I…didn’t.” He muttered.

“B-but, that was you making those sounds! I know it!” Aryll protested. Link was still in confusion. Maybe…she was wrong.

“What sounds?”

“The leaves! I heard you!” She pointed to where she heard the sounds.

“Aryll…I was in the bushes over there.” He then pointed to the bushes he came from. The siblings were pointing in two different directions. “I didn’t hear any sounds.” He continued. Aryll was nothing but confused. She started looking around in fear. What if they weren’t alone?

“T-then, what was making that noise?” Her voice was trembling as she spoke. “I promise I heard it!”

“Aryll, I’m sure you were hearing things. It is pretty dark out here anyway.” Link put a hand on her shoulder. “Let’s…go home. I think this place is getting to you.” Aryll hung her head in response, breathing deeply to regain her composure. She then nodded to her brother.

The siblings held hands and walked out, heading for home. The moon was rising, so their grandma would definitely want them back by now. Aryll was fighting the urge to stop and look back at the forest, but she kept looking forward. She didn’t want to worry Link…nor look scared. When they got down the slope, Link slowed down a bit.

“Hey, you don’t need to pretend to be brave for my sake, you know.” He clarified. It was barely noticeable in the night but Aryll’s face turned soft red again.

“I wasn’t pretending!” She argued.

“Yes you were. I’m just saying that it’s fine if you’re scared.” He continued.

“But…you were making fun of me about being scared earlier.”

“I was just teasing you. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have but, it’s alright if you were scared. You could’ve just told me.” Aryll stopped and hung her head again.

“I didn’t want you to make fun of me…because you aren’t scared of anything.”

Link started to chuckle. “Who ever said that? Of course I’m scared of things!” It was funny. Aryll didn’t remember ever seeing her brother looking afraid. Her look of shock made Link bring his chuckling up to laughter.

“You are? Like what?” She asked.

“Little things. But to give you an idea, I have to admit. I was scared of the forest when I was younger too. In fact, I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t scared at all anymore. But yesterday did make me want to go there again.”

Aryll fell silent for a few moments. Link took the opportunity to give her advice.

“Look. Here’s what I say. It’s alright to be scared, but it’s important to be brave too. If you can try to be brave, that’s a good start to getting over what you’re afraid of.”

Though Aryll didn’t fully understand what he meant yet, she smiled and nodded, thanking her brother. Link said he’d go on ahead and tell their grandma that they were back. Aryll, on the other hand, stood in front of her house, looking at the forest again. After some time, she went on inside to explain things to her grandmother.

Despite what Link said, she was scared and definitely didn’t want to go back any time soon. Those sounds she heard couldn’t have been her imagination. But if it wasn’t Link, what was it? Her mind raced as she went on inside to greet her grandmother.

“Ah, Aryll. Were you alright in there?” She asked her granddaughter with a hint of concern. “Link told me you got a bit scared.” Aryll was silent, then she looked over at Link, who just shrugged.

“...I was fine, grandma.” She finally said.

“Link didn’t scare you, right?” Her grandmother eyed her sibling.

“Grandma! I told you we wouldn’t scare each other!” Link snapped back. She laughed at his response.

“Oh come now, I was just teasing. I know you’re better than that, Link.” Link didn’t think it was that funny, but he noticed Aryll still looking uneasy. He decided to tell their grandma about it.

“Well, she was scared by something though. She said she heard some noise or something. I didn’t hear anything though.”

Now that Link said it again, Aryll started to doubt if the noise was real, but something was telling her that it definitely was.

“Aryll…is this still about yesterday?” Her grandma asked.

“…Maybe.” She muttered. “I know that I shouldn’t be worried though.”

Her grandma agreed, but was curious. “You shouldn’t, but what about this noise you were hearing?”

“Grandma, it sounded like something was in the bushes. At first, I thought it was Link, but he was hiding somewhere else. He didn’t hear it but I did. I know it.”

Her grandma sighed. Clearly she didn’t believe Aryll either. “Dear, you were so worried about it yesterday. Maybe it was your imagination.” There it was. Of course neither her brother nor her grandmother would believe her. As much as she wanted to drop it, Aryll was convinced that the noises were real. But for now, to not worry them too much, she played along.

“Yeah. I was probably imagining it.” She smiled. A fake, but convincing smile.

Just before going to bed, Aryll stayed awake a few extra minutes. She would be able to sleep much better than the night before, but she knew that she’d have to talk to someone else about this. Someone who would believe her. But whom? Her brother and grandmother clearly didn’t believe her. Joel and Zill were even younger than she was, so they may believe her, but it’s not like they’d be able to help much. Mesa was too lazy to even cut his grass. Rose or Abe, or both…maybe. What about Orca or Sturgeon? Orca, maybe. Sturgeon maybe not. He didn’t even believe his own granddaughter- wait. Yes. She’d be the perfect person to ask. She technically started this after all.

Aryll smiled to herself. She knew what to do tomorrow when she woke up. She layed down and closed her eyes. Tonight’s sleep was going to be way better compared to last night.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Aryll was right about her sleep last night. It was so much better compared to the night before. She woke up feeling very refreshed. When she looked over the edge of her bed, she noticed that Link was still asleep but her grandmother was awake.

“Good morning, Grandma.” She said, though she tried to be quiet for her brother.

“Oh? Aryll, you’re already awake?” Her grandma smiled.

“Yep!” Aryll smiled back. She began thinking about her plan for today. She had to talk to a certain someone, but it was pretty early. She might not even be awake yet. Still, Aryll was anxious. She was still determined to prove that what happened yesterday wasn’t part of her imagination. She still didn’t want to go back to the forest. If she was right, then there could’ve been something there…but perhaps going back there could help her to check. She couldn’t tell her grandmother or Link. They’d never let her go up there alone, but if they weren’t going to believe her, she felt that she had to while she waited. She was so lost in thought that she forgot that she was talking to her grandma.

“Aryll? Aryll. Are you listening?” The words cleared up again. Aryll snapped out of her mind and got down from her bed.

“Oh, sorry Grandma. Anyway, I’m gonna go out to the beach.” Before she grabbed the door knob, her grandma stopped her.

“Just why are you in such a hurry? You still need to have breakfast. Unless you want to have it later.”

“I’ll have breakfast a little later. I’m just a little excited for today, that’s all.” Aryll was telling the truth. She was a tad bit excited to prove them wrong.

“And what will be this exciting thing you’ll do today?” Her grandma was probably getting suspicious at this point. Aryll looked over to see Link starting to wake up. Oh boy. If she stalled then both of them would be onto her. She couldn’t tell them her plans for today. Her mind was struggling to find some excuse.

“Uh- I wanted to go and find some crabs on the beach. Maybe even a fish.” She was almost sweating from her anxiety. It was an alright excuse. She often did like to go look for crabs or fish that may have been in the shallow waters. Luckily, it was good enough.

“Alright, Aryll. Just be careful not to get washed away.” Her grandmother jested. Though Aryll could tell that there was a hint of worry in her voice just before. She had to make sure she didn’t seem suspicious but she had to leave.

“Bye, Grandma! Bye, Link” As soon as she finished, she was already out the door.

As soon as she was out, she scanned the island. It was sunrise and no one else was really outside. Aryll then looked over to the forest once more. Though she didn’t want to go, she felt like going there would definitely help. Still…she felt her stomach twist just by looking that way. Then she heard Link’s voice ring in her head.

“It’s alright to be scared, but it’s important to be brave too.” It said. Aryll took a few deep breaths. She was still scared…what would she do? It wouldn’t hurt just to scan the forest from the entrance. That would work. She could just take a quick peek inside and see if anything was there and be on her way.

That settled it. Aryll was lost in thought but she calmly made her way up the slope again. She didn’t even hear the door behind her creak open. She made sure to scan the island around her as she walked to make sure no one was watching her. Luckily, it was pretty early.

As she went up and walked across the bridge, she stopped in the middle. Scanning everything below one more time to make sure no one was there. When she got to the forest entrance, she looked inside. She promised herself not to go too far in there.

At least she could clearly make out everything in the forest. That was an advantage of the daytime over the nighttime. She was able to scan everything while taking a few steps inside. She was cautious of where she moved, half-expecting something to jump out at her…but nothing came. How could that be? There had to be something in there. Aryll got a whim of confidence and decided to make her presence known.

“Hello?” She called. Nothing happened.

“If anyone’s here, come out!” She called again. Still nothing happened.

Now this was strange. She spotted some pebbles, rocks and twigs scattered around. She grabbed a handful of each and chucked them into various spots around the forest. Nothing happened. After throwing a few more, she started to wonder if anything was even there. She took her chances and quickly ran in and out of the grass. Nothing reacted.

“What?” She huffed to herself.

That was it. Nothing was there. But how? She could promise that she heard something in the bushes. She trudged out of the forest. Maybe…she was wrong. For all she knew, whatever she heard could’ve been a wild pig playing in the grass. But then why wouldn’t Link hear it? She started losing hope, but something in the back of her mind told her that she was right. What if she wasn’t though? …It was probably a good idea to be cautious nonetheless. As she left, she looked back. She looked to the sky. The sun had risen, that means that people would be out by now.

“Better safe than sorry.” She told herself.

So maybe Link and her grandma were right. Maybe it was her imagination. But something kept saying that she was right. She was willing to take the chance. First things first. She had to find someone. She had to find Sue-Belle.

• • •

Walking the Island took longer than Aryll thought it should have. She was going rather slow while thinking about what she’d possibly tell Sue-Belle. How should she start? Just ask away? No. That would be way too sudden. Start off with a greeting like a conversation and then go into it? Aryll was too anxious. That would take too long. She knew that Sue-Belle lived with her grandfather, Sturgeon, so that was the first place she went.

As she walked towards the house of the brothers and spotted the older brother on the top porch, relaxing in the sun with a book, though “relaxing” was a bit of a lie, considering that he looked a tad bit upset. 

Aryll went around the side and up the ladder to his porch. She thought he would see her, but Sturgeon was too focused on his book to notice Aryll in front.

“Um…Mr. Sturgeon?” She asked somewhat meekly.

Sturgeon was still startled, dropping his book. He stood to pick it back up and faced her.

“Oh! Aryll? What are you up here for?” He asked, picking up the book again, looking for where he left off. “Did you need me for something?”

“Actually, I wanted to know where Sue-Belle was.” Aryll said. Sturgeon immediately looked a bit upset when she asked.

“Oh. She’s…” He sighed, “she’s off with that…hooligan of a brother I have.” He huffed out. Aryll started to wonder if the two ever got along. “Probably on a beach teaching her some of his fishing techniques. Pah! Next thing I know, she’ll want to start using a sword.”

Before Sturgeon could rant anymore, Aryll spoke up quickly before he could continue.

“Alright, she’s on the beach, thank you!” Aryll quickly climbed down the ladder. She heard Sturgeon grumbling something more about his brother as she headed for the beach. She didn’t recall seeing them on her way. Perhaps she should’ve asked WHERE they were on the beach.

After a few minutes, she remembered that the beach stretched in front of her house. She went towards it, and it was convenient. Orca and Sue-Belle were standing there. The old man was armed with a spear and was halfway deep into the sea, while Sue-Belle watched from the shoreline next to a bucket holding a few unfortunate fish. Aryll heard Orca calling out a few tips while he was in the water, occasionally slamming his spear into the submerged sand.

“Alright great-uncle! I think that should be enough!” Sue-Belle hollered over.

As Orca made his way back with two fish on his spear, he noticed Aryll walking up.

“Ah, Aryll, you just missed my fishing.” He called out. Sue-Belle turned her head.

“Oh, Aryll. What are you doing here?” She asked.

“I…wanted to talk to you.”

“What about?”

Aryll felt like Sue-Belle might not have wanted to talk about it, but she also didn’t want to worry Orca since he was there.

“I just wanted to ask you something. Uh…do you mind if we talk in private?” She lowered her voice.

Sue-Belle was a tad bit suspicious, but she knew Aryll probably had good intentions. “Oh. Of course we can. Give me just a second.” 

She then turned to Orca, who tossed the last of the fish with the rest in the bucket.

“Great-uncle, would you mind taking these to the house? I’ll come later.”

Orca sighed, “Fine. Goodness. There’s enough for lunch AND dinner.” He said as he walked off.

Sue-Belle then turned to Aryll. “Alright, what did you want to ask me about?”

“It was…about the forest. Remember two days ago when you said you had a weird feeling?” Aryll confided.

“I didn’t think that would still be an issue. What about it?” Sue-Belle asked.

Aryll felt the need to confess about what happened yesterday. That’s what she decided to do. “Well, last night, Link and I were playing hide and seek in the forest. When I looked for him, I heard noises like something was hiding in the bushes and it was coming to me. I thought it was Link but he said he didn’t do it. In fact, he said that he didn’t even hear anything. I could promise that I heard them! So, this morning, I went back up there and there wasn’t anything in there, but something keeps telling me that I’m right and something is definitely in the forest!” She explained all of her issues.

Sue-Belle had a look of surprise. Almost looking like…she didn’t believe Aryll’s words. Just perfect. Someone else who wouldn’t believe her. And Sue-Belle was the person she thought would be perfect to tell this to. Aryll almost lost her confidence. If no one would believe her and she couldn’t even hear anything in the morning, she had to be wrong. But- Aryll’s thoughts changed once Sue-Belle spoke.

“…You did too?” She slowly said.

Wait. Too? Aryll snapped her attention back to Sue-Belle, looking surprised herself. Sue-Belle spoke up again.

“The same thing happened to me! I could’ve sworn that I heard something there in the forest. But it wasn’t very loud, so I thought it was my imagination but something was just telling me that it was real. I almost thought of going up there again later to see.”

“When I heard it, it was pretty loud. It’s weird that Link didn’t hear it.” Aryll said. “But there was nothing there in the morning. It happened at night.”

“I was up there near sundown. That’s close enough to nighttime.” Sue-Belle responded. “So, we both heard it in the night? …What could that mean? Well- anyway, I told my grandfather and he wouldn’t believe me.”

“I told my grandma and Link and neither of them believed ME!” Aryll started getting happy. She actually had a witness! Someone who thought what she thought! But at the same time, in the back of her mind, she was also getting afraid. Aryll and Sue-Belle both had to be right. There must be something up there in the forest. Whatever it is. She had to confess her fear too.

“Then…something actually is up there in the forest.” She hesitated to speak a bit.

“Maybe we should worry about that if we go up there again. Tell you what. I was thinking of going up there again. If I do, I’ll let the people know if anything happens.” She said. Aryll nodded in response.

“Thanks Ms. Sue-Belle!” She said. And with that, she went off. The sun was near the middle of the sky. Almost lunchtime. A lot more time must’ve gone by then she thought. Before she’d be called for lunch, she made her way back to her house.

As she went up the steps to the front door, she stopped when someone cleared their throat next to her.

“I see why you were in such a hurry this morning now.” A voice spoke. Aryll turned to see her brother leaning against the fence on the patio. His arms were crossed and he looked very worried.

“You’ve been busy today.” He said.

“Oh. Hi Link.” Aryll said. She had a hint of nervousness in her voice. He must’ve been onto her. “What is it?”

“I think you know.” He frowned. He definitely knew what she was up to. “Finding crabs. In the forest? Let me guess…”

He still wouldn’t believe her. Maybe since Sue-Belle also was in the same boat, he would listen.

“Okay, I know you think I was just hearing things in the forest, but I know it was real! I talked to Sue-Belle and she said she heard things in there too and she thought they were real!” Aryll began to explain.

“Yeah,” Link started, “I heard some of that.”

“What? How?”

“…Did you forget you were right below the house?” Link let out a sigh.

“But you have to believe me! Sue-Belle promised that she heard things when she was up in the forest too! We both heard them and now I have proof!” The young girl protested. Why wouldn’t her own family believe her?

“Just because you both happened to hear some noises in the forest doesn’t prove anything. Aryll, you seriously need to let it go. Grandma would be worried sick if she heard you went up there alone.” The siblings started to get upset with each other, but they made sure not to yell.

“Why won’t you just believe me?!”

“Because you’re imagining it! Take me to the forest and see if there are any sounds. But wait, you went up there and said there wasn’t anything this morning, so there isn’t anything there!”

They started to raise their voices now and both defiantly got closer to each other.

“Well, fine. I’ll find out what was happening to prove it was real.”

“I’d like to see you try and prove it.”

“I will. Just wait.”

“Fine.”

“Fine!”

Link turned around and walked out to the other side of the island. Aryll noticed him bend over, putting his arm up to his face. Probably trying to calm himself down. Aryll, on the other hand, stormed off into the house. The siblings had had enough of each other for the time.

When Aryll went inside, she was met with her grandmother sitting on a chair, face pale. She must’ve heard the commotion outside.  
“What in the great sea happened out there?!” She said.

Aryll breathed to calm herself down and responded, “Me and Link were arguing. That’s all. Did…you hear it all?”

“Only the part where you both started yelling at each other. What is it you want to prove is real?” Of course now her grandma wanted to know. She probably still wouldn’t believe Aryll too. The young girl was too upset and thought that any explanation she’d give would be a waste of breath.

“Nothing. Just something about the forest but I know I need to let it go so that’s what I’ll do.” She was lying out of her spite of course. Her grandma could see how upset she was and decided to give her space. Aryll really wanted nothing more than to prove her family wrong. The only way they’d believe her would be if they experienced what she did. Or at least got to know that something was up there. Just maybe. That was when Aryll suddenly remembered that Sue-Belle said she might go up into the forest again and tell them if anything happens. Maybe that would change their minds. She decided to worry about it when it happened.

• • •

As time went by, the sun got lower, and the sky started getting darker. Once it was evening and the sun was setting, Aryll planned to find Sue-Belle. She was sitting up on the small second floor where they hung the family shield on the wall. Looking at it gave her some confidence in a metaphorical sense, though she didn’t fully understand why.

“Hey, Aryll?” Her grandmother called her. “I had some paints in one of these drawers. I can’t find them. Do you know where they are?”

Aryll leaned over to get her grandmother into view.

“No, I haven’t.”

“Hm. I could swear I put them here. Maybe they’re misplaced.”

Aryll heard her mumble something about a mirror too but it didn’t matter. All Aryll waited for was Sue-Belle. Now that it was evening, she decided to make her move. Climbing down the ladder, she tried to lie her way out of the house again.

“I’m going to go and find Link. Bye Grandma.” It wasn’t a complete lie though. She was hoping to later apologize to her brother. But she was too focused on tonight.  
Once she left the house, she found Sue-Belle sitting near a small bonfire in front of their house, roasting some of the fish from earlier. Sue-Belle immediately noticed Aryll once she walked towards the bonfire.

“I assume you want to ask when I’m planning to go?” She said as she took the last of the fish out of the fire’s range.

“Yeah! Aryll responded with vigor. “When should we go?”

“Oh. You wanted to go too?” Sue-Belle paused.

“I thought we would both go.”

“I was thinking about that. I think it would be better if you stay here. Your family would probably get worried if you went up there.”  
Hearing this made Aryll a bit upset again. Link did get concerned and said their grandma would be too, but she didn’t want to start that again. She did want to go up there to see for herself what was in there, but Sue-Belle reminded her of her argument with her brother. She didn’t want to step into that again. After a minute, she agreed.

“Okay. I’ll stay here. But I wanna know if anything happens!” She said.

Sue-Belle smiled in response. “Of course I’ll let you know. If anything else happens I’ll tell everyone on the island if I have to.”

Hearing this made Aryll a bit happy, though she was still a bit disappointed. In the end, she didn’t want to get herself into any more trouble.

• • •

After some time, the sky got darker. Sue-Belle went off and up the slope to the top of the island. In that moment, Aryll started to wonder where Link was. If anything, he probably fell asleep on the summit as usual. She hoped to make it up to him for how she acted. She sighed.

She suddenly felt a bit lonely despite it looking like everyone was outside. Orca and Surgeon were sitting near the bonfire eating the roasted fish, though they seemed to want to be as far from each other as possible. Joel and his brother Zill were running around on the beach. Abe and Rose also had some of the fish and were sitting outside their own house. Mesa was trying to do a half decent job with cutting his lawn but he always gives up halfway through. Her grandma took some of the fish and was preparing soup with it.   
Aryll really did feel a bit lonely. Lonely in the sense of her beliefs. She hoped that Sue-Belle would find something though. She would wait for anything.

“Aryll, do you want to come and taste the soup? It’s almost ready.” Her grandmother opened the door and interrupted her thoughts. Aryll could already smell the soup. The fish was perfectly roasted and added to the tasty aroma filling the air. Just to fill in time, she went inside to taste the soup.

“Do you think it’s good enough? I tried to perfect it.” Her grandmother said with excitement. Aryll took the soup ladle and put it up to her mouth. After she blew on it to cool it down, she took a taste. It was just wonderful.

“Wow! It IS perfect.” Aryll said. Despite its wonderful taste, in the back of her head, she was waiting for a sign, any sign. Anything at all from Sue-Belle.

After her grandmother expressed gratitude. Everything got quiet. It was dark outside and the only light in the house was the various lit lamps in the corners. Besides the sound of the crackling flame, the slightly bubbling soup, and the faint voices of people outside, everything was quiet.

And after a still moment or two, the silence was completely shattered. A distinct sound filled the air. A voice of distress. No- it was a scream. Running outside to see what happened, Aryll pinpointed where it came from and looked up. It came from the forest. It was Sue-Belle.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The door burst open with Aryll and her grandmother rushing outside. One scream and the entire setting outside had changed. Everyone was startled and trying to find the source of the cry of distress. Joel and Zill were both standing on the beach paralyzed with fear. Orca and Sturgeon both threw their plates aside and were frantically trying to see where Sue-Belle was. Mesa in his field stopped dead in his tracks, wide eyed. Rose and Abe rushed over to the side of the island everyone else was on.

“What in Goddess’s name was that?!” Abe said, panting from the running.

“THAT WAS SUE-BELLE!” Sturgeon was completely frantic, screaming as loud as his throat could bare. “WHERE IS SHE?!”

“She went up to the forest!” Aryll chimed in.

Orca and Sturgeon stared at each other and then at her.

“Again? Whatever for?” The younger pondered. Before Aryll could get any words out, Orca turned his head and spoke again. “Well, whatever happened, I’m sure she can explain.” He pointed out to the other side of the island.

Everyone turned their heads to see Sue-Belle practically sprinting right past Mesa and towards them. After seeing everyone there, Mesa trailed behind. Sue-Belle was running so fast that she almost collapsed from exhaustion when she stopped.

“Sue-Belle, what happened?!” Her grandfather came up, worried sick.

“I-it happened so fast I-” She was stuttering as she spoke and trembling. “I ran s-so fast…I need a m-minute please.” She sat down to catch her breath and was hyperventilating.

“Sue-Belle, dear. Calm down.” Aryll’s grandma said.

Aryll heard approaching footsteps and turned her head to see Link, the last inhabitant of the island running over. He himself was in a panic too. When he stopped, he put his hands on his knees and panted.

“W-who was that? What was that scream?” He was also breathing heavily from his rush.

“Link, where were you?” Their grandma asked.

“I was sleeping on the summit again.” Aryll somehow called it. Though it isn’t that surprising. Aryll answered his question.

“Sue-Belle screamed.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know.”

They all looked at Sue-Belle expectantly, but she was in too much shock. No one even knew what happened to her.

“Look, I’ll go get you a glass of water.” Rose rushed back to her house.

“Joel, Zill! Both of you should come here.” Abe called. Aryll heard an “aw” come from both of the boys.

Rose rushed back holding a cup filled with water and gave it to Sue-Belle. Sue-Belle was finally able to get a stable word out afterwards.

“I think I’m ready to talk now.” She said partially under her breath. Everyone gathered around looking concerned for her.

“Okay. What happened? Why did you scream?” Sturgeon asked, lying a hand on her while she was sitting on the ground.

“None of you may believe me, but, look. I went up to the forest again to investigate something. I was sure no one else was there, but I started hearing noises like something was there again but it sounded so real-”

Sturgeon interrupted her. “Ah last time you went there you said you heard things. It couldn’t have been real. How do you know you weren’t imagining it?”

“Well, this time it was more than sounds!” Sue-Belle said. “This time, I SAW something in there!”

Everyone reacted to this. Some looked bothered, but intrigued, some looked afraid, some looked panicked, others looked surprised, but everyone reacted to this in some way. Aryll herself was shocked. If Sue-Belle wasn’t lying, and she most likely wasn’t, she was right! There was something up there.

“Hold on.” Mesa began. “What did you see?”

“When I heard the noises I thought it was a pig or something in the grass. I tried to scare it off but it didn’t stop. I called out to make sure but the noise wouldn’t stop. I called out one more time and it stopped. I walked away but I heard it again and when I turned around, I swear! I saw a figure rising out of the grass, staring at me. I was so scared, I-I didn’t know what to do, I just ran like mad!”

“You saw a figure?” Orca contemplated her words. “What did it look like?”

“That’s the thing! I don’t even know. I just saw it’s silhouette. I don’t even think it was a person! Sure it kinda looked like a person but it also didn’t.”

Aryll thought over this. Looking like a person, but at the same time not. Sounded very strange. She then spoke up.

“So it was…some kind of monster?”

“Yes! A monster is exactly how I would describe it!” Sue-Belle let out one more yell before trying to calm herself down. “Aryll and I both heard something in the forest these past few days so I wanted to see if it was true and we were right! There is something up there, I swear it! It rose out of the bushes and it was staring at me, I think. But I know it was there!” After her explanation, she finally calmed down and stood up. 

“Well, is there any chance that we can see this ‘monster?’” Mesa clearly didn’t believe the story, and it seemed that some others didn’t either. But Aryll noticed her brother looking terrified. Link probably believed her now if anything.

“You could go back up there. That thing is probably still there but I sure am not going back up there. I don’t even want to know what that thing was.” Sue-Belle shivered at the thought of what it could be.

All the adults gathered around the bonfire. Link and Aryll were about to join, but their grandmother stopped them.

“You two probably shouldn’t get involved in this yet just to be safe. There’s fish soup still hot in the house if you need it.” She said.

“But grandma, I thought something was up there too! We live here. We should get to know.” Aryll protested, and Link agreed. Her grandmother just sighed in response. 

“Look. This ‘monster’ business could turn out to be more than let on. I just don’t want either of you getting hurt.” Aryll huffed, though Link seemed relieved to not be able to know more about it. The siblings trotted over to the house’s balcony and sat facing the house. They heard Orca say something about them being old enough (or at least Link being old enough) to take part in this, but they heard their grandma deny it once again.

Link and Aryll sat next to each other, facing the house. Aryll was less lonely now, but Link was there, so she could apologize.

“Big brother…I wanted to say…” She began.

“Yes?” Her brother replied, looking over at her.

“I’m sorry for getting mad at you. I shouldn’t have.”

“No. If anything, I should be sorry. I was being pretty mean.” He spoke somewhat quietly. Aryll could tell that he wanted to apologize before.

“Maybe I should’ve believed some of what you said.” He stared at the floor. “I’m sorry.”

“We’re both sorry, so it’s even.” His sister chuckled. He couldn’t help but do the same.  
Link layed down and put his arms behind his hair and stared up at the roof. 

“Actually, I hope that this leads to something good. Something exciting for a change.” He smiled.

“What do you mean?” Aryll layed down alongside him and turned her head to face him.

“It’s kinda boring everyday, doing the same things, same routine, same old place with nothing exciting happening. It would be a bit scary but kinda cool if this ‘monster’ was real. Makes things a bit more interesting, but at the same time, I’m worried.” Link let his thoughts out, closing his eyes.

“Yeah…” Aryll began, “But what if it is real? Think! There’s a monster over there in the forest. I-I hope we’ll be okay.”

Link opened his eyes again and sat back up, Aryll did the same. He put a reassuring hand on his younger sister’s back, saying, “Don’t worry, Aryll. We’ll be fine. If it comes over here, I’ll scare it off! Trust me.”

Aryll laughed. “Maybe it’s friendly. I sure hope so.” She did hope it wasn’t a big deal, but she seriously wanted to know what was happening now. What did it look like? Where did it come from? Why was it there? Just thinking about it made her shudder, but ever since she first had her suspicions, she seriously was more interested in this.

Aryll turned her head to see all the adults sitting around the fire, discussing this matter.

“I’m happy you believe me know, but I kinda wish they didn’t.” She sighed.

“Why?” Her brother pondered.

“I wanna go and see this monster, but Grandma probably thinks I’m too small for this. I don’t think anyone will let me go up there again.” Aryll stared over towards them. She wanted to be there too. She wanted to find out what was going on.

“You are still pretty young.” Link began. “Maybe you can still find a way to help without having to go up there.”

“I’ll have to go up there to investigate though!”

“Says who? You can rely on what other people have said if you know they aren’t lying. That’s kinda like investigation too.” Link and Aryll stood up and rested their hands on the balcony fence. “You can do it yourself. Be a detective, like in those stories Grandma would tell us.”

“Huh?” Aryll thought back to some stories they were told. Stories with a great big mystery, and a brave soul stepping up to find out what was happening and getting to the bottom of the mystery. Detectives, they were called. Intelligent problem solvers who never missed a clue. They were brave and they always had a knack for this kind of stuff. But what was happening now was unlike any of the stories she had heard. She recalled wanting to be something similar to these storybook heroes. Maybe this was her chance.

“Yeah. Just think!” Link smiled. “Detective Aryll on the case! It has a nice ring to it.”

“It does!” Aryll lit up. The name really did suit her. It only made her more determined to find out what was happening on the island.

“Link, Aryll.” They turned around seeing their grandmother walk up.

“We talked about it, and we think you two can join in this conversation. But I want you two to be careful. Alright?” She said.

The siblings secretly gripped their fists in triumph, but they made sure to take her words seriously.

They walked up and sat next to each other near the fire.

“Aryll, Sue-Belle said that you knew about this thing in the forest too, correct?” Orca immediately asked her.

“I never saw anything but I heard it at night.”

“Yes but she said she never heard anything in the morning.” Sue-Belle herself chimed in. “The only times we’ve had any sign of it was at night, so that means…”

“So it’s nocturnal?” Link blurted out. A word Aryll never heard before.

“What does ‘nocturnal’ mean?” She looked to her brother.

Sturgeon answered for him. “It would mean that it’s only active in the night. Considering what we’ve been told, that would make sense.”

“So it’s only out and about at night. But no one else has seen this thing.” Mesa added. He looked quite bored. “Look. I’ll believe it when I see it.”

Rose spoke up, almost interrupting him. “Now hold on Mesa. Sue-Belle says she’s really seen this thing. Would we all be here if she were lying to us?”

Mesa subtly rolled his eyes in response. “You sure you weren’t just hallucinating? You never seemed okay with that place anyway.”

“That’s a bit insensitive don’t you think?” Abe added in. It was surprising considering how timid Mesa could be sometimes, but with his laziness came slight stubbornness. He didn’t want to take any of this seriously.

“Aryll also heard this thing too, so there must be some truth to it.” Her grandma said. “Perhaps the only way we’ll really believe it would be if someone else were to see it. So…someone else would have to go up there.” She sounded worried at the last sentence. The very thought of going up there after hearing Sue-Belle scream really had her very concerned. 

“Alright then. Who’s willing to go up there?” Orca asked. With that, the circle fell silent. No one was really willing to stand up to it. “I will go up there, if it helps any of you.”

One voice spoke out. Link’s.

“I can go.”

“Link!” Their grandmother hollered. Most of them looked shocked that he, of all people, offered to go. “Why would you want to go up there?!”

“Well, I want to see it if Aryll can’t.” He winked at Aryll, who smiled.

“No! I can’t let you go up there by yourself!” Their grandmother was too worried.

“He won’t be by himself. Remember that I’m going up there too? He’s old enough to be on his own anyway.” Link smiled at the praise.

It took some convincing, but their grandmother finally agreed. All she hoped was for them to be safe. Before Link went off, he assured the ‘detective’ that he’d tell her whatever happened up there. Aryll, of course, had to stay back, but she was eagerly waiting to see what new they would come back with. She was also concerned about her brother. He was brave though. A living reminder that she just had to be brave in the face of her fears. So, she waited.

Some of the other residents scattered around but were still near the fire, also waiting for them to return, but Aryll stayed by the fire. Her grandmother was even more anxious. She was waiting at the bottom of the slope. From where she was, the entrance to the forest wasn’t visible, but she had to see them as soon as they arrived.

• • •

After a few minutes, a figure did appear to walk towards the slope. Aryll’s grandmother had a glimmer of hope, but there was only one figure. As they came closer, it turned out to be Orca. Of course, her grandmother immediately looked worried.

“Where’s Link?!” She said.

Orca sighed. “Calm down. He’s just waiting by the forest entrance.”

“You left him up there alone?!”

“Only for a few minutes. I need a lantern to be able to even see anything. The forest is pitch dark at this time. Link promised that he wouldn’t go in there.”

The old woman was still concerned for her grandson, but he was smart. He wouldn’t do anything foolish. As Orca walked over, Aryll also took notice of her brother’s absence. Orca had to explain the story to her as well. She did have faith in her older brother, but she was afraid for his sake.

“Alright. I’ll go find a lantern and rejoin him as soon as possible. Trust me.” Orca was trying to ward off her grandmother, though Orca couldn’t blame her. This was her own grandson they were talking about.

As for her granddaughter, things were a bit boring. She sat by the fire towards where the beach began, drawing things in the sand with her fingers. Somehow, she had an uneasy feeling. It was quiet again. The crackling of the fire was behind her and the sounds of calm waves were in front.

Aryll sighed. “Come on big brother. Where are you?” She said to herself.

She looked at her sand artwork. One of a seagull, and another of a pig. She had good reference, considering there were some seagulls hopping around on the beach in front of her. As she got up, she heard a familiar squeal somewhere behind. Turning around, of course. She found one of the native pigs on this island. It walked up to her, clearly not afraid of her bigger presence.

“You aren’t scared of me, are you?” She slowly brought her hand and tapped it’s head. Clearly this pig was a brave one. She couldn’t imagine being in its position. Approaching something much bigger compared to her so calmly. It got her thinking about the monster again. What was it like? It had to be bigger than her, right? That would make it way more scary. She zoned out, letting her hand fall asleep on the pig’s head. What if Link got to see it? What if he was in trouble? No matter what. She wanted to help him in any way she could.

She looked at the pig, seeing that it shed no fear. It felt strange, but she hoped to be like it. Unafraid like it, and brave like her brother. That’s what she wanted to be. She smiled and let go of it’s head.

And right when she did, another sound filled the air and the pig quickly fled. She heard the sound of wings taking to the sky behind. Listening to the air, what she heard, was another scream. Was it Sue-Belle again? No. It was the voice of…oh no. It was Link.

Without a second thought, Aryll stood up. She knew he was near the forest. Like she said. No matter what, she wanted to help him in any way she could. So what did young Aryll do? She ran towards the forest.


End file.
